Recognition
by Risma
Summary: OneShot: Rated for innuendo. PoA. Oliver feels invisible now that he roommate has more important things on his mind. stupid fez. Read and Enjoy


_My first ever Percy/Oliver fic. Harsh criticism is most welcome as it will only improve hard work. However flames about slash fan-fiction will not perturb me. Read and enjoy – Risma_

**Disclaimer: **J.K. Rowling owns all to do with Harry Potter, his friends, family and enemies. This story is for fun, not profit.

**Recognition**

Today had been terrible. It was not that he had watched his Seeker nearly die from a fall several stories high. It was not that he had lost the Quidditch cup every year since he was captain. It was not that he had got a lecture earlier that day from Professor McGonagall about his poor grades.

It was that tonight Percy Weasley was sitting and doing his usual study without mentioning two words to him. Oliver Wood had realized that he was not sure that Percy even knew he still had a room mate in residence, that he was just another piece of furniture in their room. But the thing that irked him the most was that although Percy did not pay him any attention; Oliver could not keep the arrogant red-head out of his thoughts.

It all started when one of the Ravenclaws had asked him whether he would keep in touch with Percy once they had all graduated at the end of the year. It was then that Oliver realized that the room mates hardly did any thing together any more. He would frequently flashback to the days when they were younger and inseparable. Percy was helping Oliver get the Quidditch gear ready for practice and sitting in the stands cheering him on. Percy was the first to congratulate him when he won the position of captain three years ago and bought him a tin of broom polish. Oliver would sometimes stay at the Burrow on the holidays and keep the twins at bay whist Percy studied. They would talk long into the night about scary Professor Snape, their grades, Quidditch, girls and their future plans once they had left Hogwarts.

Then Percy received his prefect duties and that pulled away at their time together. He had to patrol the hallways at night and Oliver would never hear him return to their dorm. Oliver was busy with practice early in the mornings and could not afford to wait until Percy was awake to help with the equipment. Then there was Penelope Clearwater, who took up all Percy's time on the holidays, as he would lock himself away to write long love letters to her via Hermes. The twins had mentioned that Percy was a lot more pompous and solitary now that Oliver never visited, but they did not mind as Percy was more fun to rile up these days. They were much closer before responsibility took precedence.

But this boy had become more intriguing this year and it all had to do with one thing: the fez. It adorned his auburn curls like a crown as if to typify the prestige that came with the title "Head Boy" and Oliver despised it.

"Where did you get the fez?" Oliver asked.

Percy quickly spun around in his seat looking rather surprised. Surely he remembered that Oliver was still attending Hogwarts; "What?"

"I said; where did you get the fez?" Oliver repeated rather shortly.

Percy reached up and touched the velvet amongst his curls. "My family went to Egypt this year." Oliver recalled an earlier conversation with the twins about trying to lock their older brother in one of the pyramids. He gave them extra Beater practice for even thinking of such a deed and they never mentioned it again. "What are you smiling at?" Oliver snapped out of his reverie to find Percy glaring at him. "If you thought it looked ridiculous you just had to say so." He said throwing it angrily into the corner.

"No! No. it looks fine." He lied. "It's just – you've changed this year." Oliver sat on the edge of his bed trying to induce a conversation with his friend. He used to be really good at it as long as he kept the red head intrigued enough to ask questions. It worked as Percy looked a little confused but resisting the urge to get back to studying. "How?"

"I don't know the word for it," he said wincing at his lack of wit. Oliver hoped that this opening would allow Percy to create an excuse for ignoring their friendship. It would be the turning point and ignition for an argument.

The other boy hissed irritably and turned back to his study. "Think on it quietly. I'm trying to study."

That tore it! Here he was trying to heal a pastime of hurt and neglect and all his friend wanted to do was study. That selfish prat. "Well what's the word for having a long pole stuck up your arse?" Oliver snapped. The scratching of the parchment stopped and the chair fell to floor with a crash as Percy stormed over to the bed. Oliver immediately got to his feet and glared up at his room mate. Though this was not the way he pictured them reminiscing about old times, at least he now had Percy's attention.

"What exactly do you mean, Wood? And I'd choose my words carefully if I was you," Percy whispered to him. Oliver knew the use of surnames meant that Percy was on the edge of restraint and all he needed was a little push.

"Where to begin?" Oliver laughed sharply. "Just because you're Head Boy and have your own little fez crown, doesn't mean you have the right to be condescending to every other student in school."

"For your information, I'm being cautious because there's a serial killer on the loose!" Percy hissed. "And when have I ever been condescending towards you?"

"Never," Oliver shrugged. Percy nodded with satisfaction at the answer. He could not let the conversation stop there. He had to find a counter argument; think of something fast. "But that's my point!" Again Percy looked confused, which was not a sight Oliver experienced twice a day. He had Percy's attention and had to hold on to it. "You're pushing everyone else away or keeping them at a professional distance but when it comes to the one person who probably knows exactly what you're going through, you completely ignore them!" shouted Oliver.

"I'm not pushing Penny away," Percy said. "Just because I don't loll around making goo-goo faces at her does not mean-"

"Not Penny!" Oliver could not believe that Percy was that dense. "Me! I'm the Captain of the brave Gryffindor Quidditch team who've never won the Quidditch Cup. I'm the sporting legend who is supposed to go onto Quidditch history and yet can't even get into semi-trials for any professional C team! You think I don't know anything about the pressure it takes to be a role model?" Oliver was only stating obvious facts and the light had yet to dawn on Percy. "For cryin' out loud, Perce! I was asked to be Head Boy!" Oliver yelled.

Percy's eyes lit up and he grabbed Oliver's shirt in one fist and drew back the other. All Oliver felt was the searing pain in his jaw and the sharp headache he always got after being hit by a Bludger. His vision swam and eventually he looked up at Percy straddled over him raising his fist again. "Liar," Percy whispered.

"It's the truth, Perce," Oliver said, raising his arms in defense. Percy's fist slowly rested on Oliver's chest and hung his head. "Dumbledore wasn't sure you could handle the position, what with NEWTS and Ginny's incident last year. He thought you might not have been able to take the strain," Oliver explained, cautiously letting down his guard.

Percy was silent, then his hand clenched Oliver's shirt. "You took pity on me? That's how I got the position?" he croaked.

"No," Oliver patted Percy's fist. "I told him you would be much more responsible than I. That you already had the experience with your prefect duties." Suddenly a hot droplet fell on his neck and Percy quickly withdrew his hands, wiping away the tell-tale tears. "Besides the twins would lose all respect for me," joked Oliver.

This drew a smile out on Percy's blotchy face and Oliver was transported back to the time when the older Slytherins had bullied Percy about his glasses. They had cornered him near the Forbidden Forest, silently crying as they ridiculed him, when a horrible bark echoed from the leafy darkness. The Slytherins ran, leaving Percy to face the frightening animal, only to find Oliver grinning like a fool. He had been practicing his krup imitations all summer and finally had a chance to show them off. That felt so very long ago.

"I'm sorry I was such a git," Percy said resting back on his knees. "I should've known I could never match Bill and Charlie." This had always been a sore topic for old Percy and Oliver knew he had to make light of the situation.

"Are you kiddin'? You've got the one thing everyone is envious of!" grinned Oliver but Percy was confused. "You've got Oliver Wood as your room mate!" The red-head rolled his eyes and Oliver knew he had his friend back. The personal narcissism always got that reaction. "Do you know how many people are jealous of you? The rumors that get around are just amazing!"

"Rumors?" Percy frowned down at Oliver as he propped himself up on his elbows. Percy looking confused three times in day had to be a record. Oliver mentally noted it down.

"After all, there are no other Gryffindors in our grade. It's the perfect dumb sports jock and shy but aspiring academic couple!" explained Oliver.

Percy started to turn a bright pink. "Please tell me you're joking."

"Joking?" Oliver smiled. "I wish! At least you don't have to hear them!"

"Why? What have you heard?" A devilish smile was creeping on Percy's face.

"Midnight meetings, accidentally locked in various cupboards, weird results to assigned projects, twisted fats, some creepy mirror, screaming matches with Pen, public displays to save honor and the Quidditch showers all come into it somewhere," Oliver drummed his fingers on the bed linen as he counted them off.

Percy chuckled. "Didn't know you were that audacious?"

"Me?" Oliver laughed. "My dear fellow, most of this is pointed at you being the initiator. Alicia said something about a character from a muggle novel. A Mister Dershly… Darkly…Dancely…?"

"I don't get it?" Percy frowned. Four times; he tallied.

"Pent up sexual frustration apparently," Oliver ignored Percy turning a bright shade of red. These rumors would embarrass any young man and let alone one as prude as Percy. "Personally, I find it a little… well… immoral. I see you more as a sibling rather than a… you know…"

Percy peered at Oliver over the rim of his glasses. "Lover?"

"Yeah… It'd be awkward. Disturbing," said Oliver.

Percy sat there quietly for a few moments then said; "I'm not that horrific, am I?"

"Course not. After all, Pen loves you," Oliver clapped him on the arm and Percy just sat there. "What's wrong? You alright?"

"I'm just feeling depressed lately," Percy sighed.

Oliver flopped back on the bed stretching his arm behind his head. "Aren't we all? Nearly drowned myself in the showers just then." Percy started to turn pink again. "What?" asked the Scot grinning from ear to ear.

"Nothing," Percy started wringing his hands.

Oliver propped himself up again with a hint of mischievous in his eyes. He had forgotten how easily his friend could switch on his vivid imagination and by the obvious blood rush to Percy's face it had to be very interesting. "C'mon Perce… what's running through that little head of yours? Anything indecent?" Percy's glasses began to fog up and Oliver began to poke him in the chest. "Ahh something about the showers, eh? What did you and Pen get up to? Hmm?"

"No! It's nothing like that! It's –" Then Percy stopped. Just stopped everything. Talking. Fidgeting. Blushing. Blinking. Oliver could have sworn he even stopped breathing. Suddenly the blank expression of Hogwarts' Head Boy was back and Oliver lost his best friend. "I've put away childish thoughts, Oliver. You have to as well if you want to survive the world out there."

Percy rolled off the bed and began packing his things off his desk much to Oliver's disbelief. He did not understand what had happened there. He was only kidding around. Percy did not have to confess anything. They used to talk about this kind of stuff all the time when they were younger; most of it surpassed their naivety. The innuendo circulating today would have left them in the dark as they would have been too shy to ask anyone else about what the rumors meant.

Then it all quickly made sense to Oliver. The smiles, the conversations, the affection that Percy had bestowed on him, was something rare and Oliver was sure that even Penelope Clearwater would never see that side of his best friend.

He snatched Percy's sleeve and finally saw the hurt and the pain that shone through the stony expression. "I'm sorry, Perce. I didn't know," he said.

Percy gave him a sad smile and patted his hand reassuringly. "I'm going to find Penny. Maybe she'll study with me," and he closed the door.

Oliver sat there gently rubbing his aching jaw. Perhaps Oliver had gotten everything wrong from the start that afternoon. Lack of recognition was not Percy's fault but rather his own.


End file.
